Top 10 Highest Paying Healthcare Administration Jobs In The US
Top 10 Highest Paying Healthcare Administration Jobs In The US

We now live in a world where ‘COVID-19’ has become a household name, and where the whole idea of a global pandemic is no longer some kind of abstract idea from the plotline of a dystopian sci-fi movie. But we also live in a world where technology-driven practices and medical innovations are changing the way we do healthcare. And all the while, the demands on our healthcare system have never been greater.

Both the challenges and the complex nature of the solutions are pushing our healthcare system like never before, so the call for expert medical specialists, nurses and allied health professionals continues to grow.

Whether your sights are set on providing care at the bedside, managing healthcare teams, or making decisions at the systems level, healthcare continues to be one of the most steady and reliable industries, where job growth and advancement opportunities are pretty much a sure thing.

We feature the top 10 highest-paying health care management jobs in the US in this post if you are choosing a healthcare high salary job now.

What is a Healthcare Administration Career?

Healthcare Administration is a broad field with A LOT of career opportunities and paths within it. Before we dig into the highest-paying positions, let’s define what healthcare administration is and explore some of the jobs available within it.

Healthcare administration, often called health administration or medical administration encompasses people involved in making decisions around a healthcare system’s business strategies. These are the people in charge of or are involved in, planning, directing, and coordinating the business activities for healthcare providers or organizations.

With this broad definition, it’s no wonder there are so many career opportunities within it!

Healthcare in the United States

  1. There is no universal healthcare. The U.S. government does not provide health benefits to citizens or visitors. Any time you get medical care, someone has to pay for it.
  2. Healthcare is very expensive. According to a U.S. government website, if you break your leg, you could end up with a bill for $7,500. If you need to stay in the hospital for three days, it would probably cost about $30,000.
  3. Most people in the U.S. have health insurance. Health insurance protects you from owing a lot of money to doctors or hospitals if you get sick or hurt. To get health insurance, you need to make regular payments (called “premiums”) to a health insurance company. In exchange, the company agrees to pay some, or all, of your medical bills.
  4. You will get most of your care from your “primary care provider” (PCP). After you buy health insurance, you can choose a PCP who is part of your insurance company’s network. If you buy an MIT health insurance plan, you will choose a PCP at MIT Medical. Your new PCP could be a nurse practitioner or a physician. You will see your PCP when you need a physical exam or lab test, when you are sick, or if you need care for an ongoing condition, like diabetes or high blood pressure.
  5. You will usually need an appointment to get medical care. If you want to see your PCP, you will need to call your PCP’s office to make an appointment. When you call, you need to explain why you need the appointment. If you are sick or hurt, you will get an appointment very soon. If you just need a routine physical exam, you might have to wait several weeks or even a month.

Healthcare average salary in the USA

A person working in Health and Medical in the United States typically earns around 141,000 USD per year. Salaries range from 29,600 USD (lowest average) to 423,000 USD (highest average, the actual maximum salary is higher).

This is the average yearly salary including housing, transport, and other benefits. Salaries vary drastically between different Health and Medical careers. If you are interested in the salary of a particular job, see below for salaries for specific job titles.

The national average salary for Healthcare is $57,155 per year in the United States. Filter by location to see Healthcare salaries in your area. Salaries estimates are based on 332 salaries submitted anonymously to Glassdoor by Healthcare employees.

The highest salary for Healthcare in the United States is $107,447 per year.

The lowest salary for Healthcare in the United States is $30,403 per year.

What Are 10 Highest Paying Healthcare Administration Jobs In The US?

1. Nursing home administrator

2. Health care marketing manager

3. Chief nursing officer

4. Health information technology specialist

5. Assisted living administrator

6. Consulting healthcare administrator

7. Healthcare quality improvement manager

8. Hospital administrator

9. Medical coding specialist

10. Health Clinic Administrator

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Top 10 Highest Paying Healthcare Administration Jobs In The US

1. Nursing home administrator

Photo: medbest
Photo: medbest

A nursing home administrator deals primarily with managing the patients in a nursing home. Because a nursing home is so much more than a simple healthcare-providing facility, a nursing home administrator has a few extra responsibilities that are specific to nursing homes. Generally, they make sure all the patient’s healthcare needs are met and that they also have a pleasant experience. They do this by overseeing nursing services, ensuring that the residents receive high-quality healthcare, food, and entertainment. They also deal with the finances and other departments of the nursing home.

Job prospects & salary

The pay for nursing home administrators differs according to the level of experience. According to PayScale, the average annual salary for this position is $92,762, with the entry-level salary being $74,435. The nursing home administrators with 10+ years of experience make approximately $101,477. As for the job outlook for nursing home administrators, it is expected to grow 17% by 2024, according to the BLS.

2. Health care marketing manager

Photo: prezi
Photo: prezi

A healthcare marketing manager’s job includes knowledge of healthcare as well as marketing strategies. Through their marketing skills and strategies, these types of managers help their clients (usually physicians, health insurance companies, hospitals, etc.) keep their patients informed about healthcare programs. Essentially, a healthcare marketing manager is no different than a conventional marketing manager in the sense that there is a client (the healthcare provider), a target market (patients), and a product (healthcare).

Job prospects & salary

According to the data collected by PayScale, a healthcare marketing manager’s average annual salary is $75,000, whereas the BLS predicts a 6% job growth rate by 2029 for marketing managers in general.

3. Chief nursing officer

Photo: norwich.edu
Photo: norwich.edu

Also referred to as a director of nursing, the chief nursing officer is responsible for overseeing an entire nursing department. This high-level leadership role comes with paychecks that are easily the highest of any you’ll find in the nursing field. Most CNOs hold an MSN or MHA.

Top executives in healthcare, such as CNOs, earned a median salary of $166,410, according to 2019 BLS stats, placing them squarely in the middle on the salary hierarchy among executives at this level in any industry:

Job prospects & salary

According to PayScale, the average annual salary for a chief nursing officer is $135,781. This number differs depending on the years of experience, location, and other factors. The job outlook for chief nursing officers is projected to grow 22%, according to the BLS.

4. Health information technology specialist

Photo: prezi
Photo: prezi

This is an emerging occupation. It may have evolved from an existing occupation or appeared in response to consumer needs or technological advances.

In general, health information technology (HIT) specialists work with healthcare-related software and information technology (IT). This technology is designed to capture, manage, and display health-related records, databases, and information.

Health information applications can improve the level of care hospitals and clinics provide. They can also reduce administrative costs and provide records that may be needed in legal cases.

Job prospects & salary

According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for a health information technology specialist is $67,437. According to the BLS, the job outlook for this position is expected to increase 11% by 2028.

5. Assisted living administrator

Photo: relias
Photo: relias

Assisted living administrators work in assisted living facilities, which share some commonalities with nursing homes. Both nursing homes and assisted living residences serve elderly residents by providing a secure environment, support services, medication management, communal activities, and meal preparation. But the critical differences between assisted living facilities and nursing homes lie in their medical services and structural appearance.

Nursing homes provide round-the-clock medical care and monitoring. This could mean the staff includes speech pathologists, specialized nurses, respiratory specialists, or physical therapists. As a result, a nursing home can appear more institutional than an assisted living facility and may resemble a hospital where residents sometimes share rooms and are cared for by full-time medical professionals.

Assisted living facilities provide a group living environment for aging citizens, and the staff is better equipped to respond to minor and less life-threatening issues like impaired mobility and memory loss. As a result, resident life is more community-focused and empowering for the residents, who often have their own suites and a strong sense of agency in their day-to-day lives, with assistance always close by should they need it.

Job prospects & salary

According to PayScale, an assisted living administrator makes on average $60,270 annually. The BLS has estimated a 20% job growth across all healthcare service managers, including assisted living administrators.

6. Consulting healthcare administrator

Photo: online.maryville.edu
Photo: online.maryville.edu

As a healthcare consultant, you will be required to analyze an organization’s operations and discover inefficiencies within it. In other words, the primary role of a healthcare consultant is to recommend ways to reduce costs and increase revenue within an organization. When applied to a medical setting, this means working hand-in-hand with the healthcare facilities administrators to identify the exact problem areas than to propose solutions. A healthcare consultant will need to conduct evaluations and then design systems and procedures to improve efficiencies. As such, this career involves a lot of programming analysis and management consulting. As a consultant, it is important to have exemplary oral and written communication skills, a pleasant demeanor, and be reliable. Healthcare consultants may work as independent contractors or be hired from within a company as ongoing consultants and analysts. As a healthcare consultant, you may work with C-suite executives as well as nurses and doctors. Therefore, it is beneficial for a healthcare consultant to have a working knowledge of the healthcare industry as well as some previous medical training. However, it is not always necessary to have medical training. Many individuals with a degree such as an MBA do well as healthcare consultants. Some individuals may choose to become certified as a certified management consultant (CMC) to increase their job prospects. As a healthcare consultant, you should be able to engage with critical thinking, have exemplary math skills, and have good judgment. On average, a healthcare consultant earns $95,688 a year.

Job prospects & salary

According to the BLS, the average annual salary for this position is $96,540, with a 24% projected job growth by 2024.

7. Healthcare quality improvement manager

Photo: hopkinsmedicine
Photo: hopkinsmedicine

Quality improvement managers review and revise existing policies and procedures. They must successfully implement process improvement or quality management programs. They establish work plan metrics and pursue data collection methods for accurate trending reports. They may analyze performance metrics related to top diagnoses, clinical procedures, and operational performance in order to recommend valid solutions. They may focus on clinical prioritization, service quality, provider feedback, and improvement initiatives.

Quality improvement managers may work with quality directors, committees, and workgroups to drive desired outcomes. These could be based on service contracts, staff education, and accreditation requirements. Quality improvement managers may act as knowledge experts for continuous improvement activities in all clinical, functional, and administrative areas. They monitor various department processes, such as care complaints and medical record assessments, in order to recommend actions to address any risks or vulnerabilities. Every month, they review clinical quality studies, trended industry data, national benchmark assessments, and best practice interventions.

Job prospects & salary

According to ZipRecruiter, a healthcare quality improvement specialist’s average annual salary is $63,311. Employment regarding this position is expected to grow 18% by 2028, as projected by Zippia.

8. Hospital administrator

Photo: thebalancecareers
Photo: thebalancecareers

A hospital administrator is responsible for overseeing the health services as well as the activities of a hospital or other healthcare facility. The healthcare administrator job duties are: managing the budget and maintaining the budget, managing staff including hiring and firing as well as training staff, becoming the communicative liaison between departments to ensure quality control and the highest patient care, and working alongside IT technicians to ensure that healthcare technology to ensure that technology safely protects patient privacy. The day-to-day jobs include managing the budget, sterilizing equipment, evaluating personnel, ensuring HIPPA compliance, training personnel, coordinating services with the hospital board and other regulating authorities, completing documentation of patient visits, and more. A hospital administrator should have a minimum of a bachelor's degree in healthcare administration as well as a CPR certification and a good working knowledge of HIPAA regulations and other coding regulations. To be an excellent healthcare administrator you should have fantastic oral and written communication skills, the ability to multitask, planning skills, the ability to work independently and as part of a team, have critical thinking skills as well as problem-solving skills, and a number of years of experience In management.

Job prospects & salary

According to PayScale, a hospital administrator makes on average $87,351 annually. As was the case with most healthcare managers in the BLS data, employment for this position is expected to grow 32% by 2030.

9. Medical coding specialist

Photo: womenonbusiness
Photo: womenonbusiness

Medical coders are the individuals responsible for translating physicians’ reports into useful uniform medical codes. These professionals work behind the scenes in a variety of settings, ensuring all pertinent information is coded appropriately to ensure consistency and accuracy.

After a medical provider examines or treats a patient, the insurance company or government provider needs to understand what was done in order to process the bill. Common language is too inexact to give the insurance company the accurate details it needs, so a set of specific codes has been established to define medical procedures. It’s the role of the medical coder to pass along this information in a way that is useful and efficient.

Job prospects & salary

According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for a medical coding specialist is $43,138, whereas BLS projects an average (8%) job outlook.

10. Health Clinic Administrator

Photo: healthcareadministrationjobs
Photo: healthcareadministrationjobs

Clinical administrators at a medical clinic are also called managers or supervisors. They have a huge list of responsibilities, and some of them include hiring or training staff. They will also need to make schedules for staff and carry out meetings. Some of these responsibilities include hiring and training staff, making staff schedules, and conducting staff meetings. You will also be responsible for the maintenance of the facility while also ensuring that the right policies are implemented. Overseeing the billing is also important, along with employing various marketing campaigns. Depending on the clinic that you work for, the range of responsibilities will differ, but one thing is for sure, you will have some very important undertakings if you want to pursue this role.

Job prospects & salary

The salary for a health clinic administrator will really depend on the size of the clinic that they are managing, along with the geographical area and the specialty of the clinic. (A low-income service clinic, for instance, may not pay as highly as a plastic surgery clinic, for instance.) For this role, we can refer to the BLS average salary of around $96K for an administrative services manager.

How to Find the Right Career Path

Now that you have a broad overview of the career options in healthcare, it’s time to narrow down your choices. Answer these questions to help point you toward the right career path.

How long do you want to attend school?

What kind of salary suits your lifestyle?

What is the career outlook for your desired position?

These questions can help you find the career option to best meets your needs. This guide uses data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to explain education requirements, salary information, and job outlook projections for different healthcare careers.

You might also want to keep in mind where you intend to live in the future. Some cities may have an increased need for certain positions. It can be helpful to know if particular positions are in-demand where you plan to live.

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